A woman places flowers during a ceremony at the Piskaryovskoye Cemetery in St. Petersburg Russia, May 8, 2013.

The ceremony was held as a memorial for the more than 1 million people that perished, mostly from hunger, during the 1941-1944 siege of Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) by Nazi forces.

Credit: Dmitry Lovetsky/AP

Belorussian youth take part in a Victory Day celebration in Minsk, May 9, 2013.

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Russian Su-25 attack aircraft release smoke in the colors of the Russian flag while flying over Red Square in Moscow, May 9, 2013.

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World War II veterans leave the podium after watching the Victory Day parade in Moscow's Red Square, May 9, 2013.

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Russian World War II veterans, former navy sailors, celebrate Victory Day in Moscow's Gorky Park, May 9, 2013.

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Russian military cadets march along Red Square during a Victory Day parade, May 9, 2013.

Credit: Ivan Sekretarev/AP

A girl gives flowers to a veteran near the tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Antakalnis memorial during Victory Day celebrations in Vilnius, Lithuania, May 9, 2013.

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A Russian World War II veteran arrives to celebrate Victory Day in Moscow's Gorky Park, May 9, 2013.

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An honor guard soldier holds a Soviet-era flag depicting Vladimir Lenin as people attend a wreath laying ceremony at the Piskaryovskoye Cemetery in St. Petersburg, Russia, May 8, 2013.

Credit: Dmitry Lovetsky/AP

Russian soldiers march along Red Square during the Victory Day parade, May 9, 2013.

Credit: Ivan Sekretarev/AP

Russian soldiers march along Red Square during the Victory Day parade in Moscow, May 9, 2013.

Credit: Ivan Sekretarev/AP

Russian World War II veterans walk after the Victory Day parade in Red Square, May 9, 2013.

Credit: Ivan Sekretarev/AP

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets senior officers after the Victory Day Parade in Moscow's Red Square. During a short speech at the event, Putin said that Russia will be a guarantor of world security.